


Judith

by captaincastle



Category: The Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: Dad Shane Walsh, Gen, POV Shane Walsh, Protective Shane Walsh, Shane Walsh Lives, shane has a beard
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-18
Updated: 2017-07-18
Packaged: 2018-12-03 23:46:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,695
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11542947
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/captaincastle/pseuds/captaincastle
Summary: What if Shane lived and was the one who saved Judith when the prison fell?





	Judith

Shane was on his own after the farm. He and Rick fought, and Rick made it clear he wanted Shane to leave. He did leave, and he felt constant guilt as he watched the barn get overrun and he was safe from the herd.

He stayed alone, but he followed the group. He was always a few days behind them. They never knew, but he wanted to see where they ended up. He didn’t like being lonely, though he managed in being alone. He never stayed outside if he could help it, and he always found a house or some sort of shelter to stay in. He could fall sleep anywhere.

When the group found the prison, Shane thought about sneaking into one of the cell blocks, but he didn’t know if that would be a good idea. His hair had grown back, and he had a beard now. He wondered if anyone in the group would even recognize him. But he still didn’t want to risk it.

So he did what he’d done in those lonely months, he scavenged and was on his own. But he always knew where the prison was.

Shane saw Carol and Rick once, he was in a house, and he saw them from the window. He saw them separate. And Shane wondered what Carol did. He knew Rick wouldn’t leave her, so he was guessing it was something like what got Shane ‘banished’. He could tell it wasn’t just a separation to get more supplies, but Carol quickly went her own way before Shane could meet up with her.

He decided to make his way back to the prison, he was starting to run out of places to get supplies. He had enough for now, but he needed to go a different direction. Yet he still wanted to stay close to the prison if he could. He still had that hope they would let him in, ironic he thought. He’s a cop and he’s begging to get into prison. But if Rick kicked out Carol, there’s no way they would take him back.

He made his way towards the prison, just in time to see it fall.

On instinct Shane ran inside the fallen gates. He killed what walkers he could but he needed to know if Rick, Lori, and Carl were ok. Shane had no idea Lori was gone, and he’d almost forgotten about Judith.

He didn’t see anyone but walkers when he got inside. He heard yelling, but when he heard a baby crying, he froze.

Turning around quickly he saw Judith, she was in a little baby carrier and next to her was a bag of supplies for her, he guessed. But why was she alone?

More instincts kicking in, he picked her up. He left behind her carrier, but he grabbed that bag of her things.

He saw a bus drive away, and that’s when the thought hit him.

He realized he was going to have to take care of this baby alone. And he didn’t even know her name.

He knew he had to get to the woods and away from the walkers. That was the priority. He didn’t look back at the prison as he walked away. Smoke billowed behind him. The smell of smoke and the dead was heavy in his nose.

Once he was ‘safe’ in the woods he assessed his situation. He remained calm and kept his ears and eyes open for anything while he double checked his supplies. He had some water, a little food, and a fair amount of weapons. He checked Judith’s bag and it was stocked full. He wouldn’t have to stop for her for a while if he rationed it all well. 

But how do you ration for a baby?

He opened a water bottle and gave Judith a sip, then he took a swig himself. He heard groans from the walkers close by. He needed to move.

He put the packs on his shoulders, and held Judith on his hip. His shotgun was in his other hand.

“It’s just you and me now, kid.” He whispered and trekked into the woods.

Shane knew there were houses nearby, but he was turned around, he was on the other side of the woods from where he had been. He knew they would need shelter. A place to sleep is important for the both of them. It’s hot and he didn’t want her to be in the heat longer than necessary. He stayed in the shade while he walked to keep the sun out of her eyes.

It got darker sooner than he realized and he was nowhere near being out of the woods, literally and figuratively.

He knew he wasn’t going to get any sleep that night. How could he? He’s the sole protector of this child.

His child.

He can’t sleep and risk something happening to either of them. If something happens to him, then it’s bad news for her.

Shane had some rope in his bag, and he tied it around a small group of trees. It took him longer than he thought because he’s having to hold a baby in his arms.

He sat down and leaned against the biggest tree of the clump. He shifted Judith so she was sitting on his lap.

“D’you wanna take first watch?” he ask her. She blinked up at him and yawned.

“I’ll take that as a ‘no’,” he chuckled. He adjusted her so she rested her head against his chest. She curled her hands under her chin and fell asleep quickly. Shane patted her hair softly and enjoyed the peaceful moment while he could. He unbuttoned his shirt and buttoned it back up around her to make sure she was warm.

His hand was secure on her back, while his other hand still held onto his shotgun. He had a knife in his boot and another gun on his hip. But he wasn’t letting go of that shotgun.

Shane had done many a stakeout in his time, and he’d pulled a lot of all nighters. But this was a first.

He was completely alone in these woods. He’d been alone before, but then he didn’t have to worry about taking care of a baby. Every sound made him alert. An owl hooted and the hairs on the back of his neck stood up. It was total darkness. He was afraid to have a fire because it might attract something.

He tensed when he heard a stick crack, and some leaves rustle. He told himself it was just an animal but he wasn’t at ease. He held onto little Judith tighter.

Sleep was calling his name and he fought so hard. His eyes were heavy but he was too worried to fall asleep. Another stick crack got his adrenaline pumping and he was wide awake again.

This had to be the longest night of his life. He had an uneasy feeling and he knew as soon as he had light in the morning, he was looking for shelter. He couldn’t stay out in the darkness alone like this again.

He tried to plan out what he needed mentally to calm himself and keep focused. The darkness seemed to only get darker as the night went on.

His heart stopped when he heard leaves rustling again. It was obvious what it was. The leaves were being shuffled under feet, not pushed quickly by a small animal.

Shane’s heart was pounding in his chest as the steps got closer. He felt his stomach churn when he heard the groans.

What if the walker smelled him and Judith?

Shane’s hand curled around the shotgun a little tighter. There was a lump in his throat and his heart was pounding in his ears as he heard the walker walk past.

He heard the sound of the rustling leaves fade. And he let out a tiny sigh of relief. But he panicked when he heard the leaves rustling get faster. The groans got louder and Shane froze. He leaned his head back against the tree and held his breath.

That’s when Shane heard an animal shriek. It sounded like a deer. Shane’s blood went cold. He waited for what felt like years for the walker to leave.

It finally did and there was silence again.

Shane wanted to sleep so bad. His body was fatigued.

Judith slept most of the night thankfully, but she stirred when birds started to sing. It was still dark but Shane knew that birds singing meant daylight wasn’t far behind.

Judith started to coo and babble a little, and Shane smiled, briefly. He still couldn’t help but worry her ‘talking’ would draw attention to them.

Then a terror struck Shane that he hadn’t thought about all night. He had no clue how to take care of this little girl. He’d never even held her before that day. Never even seen her.

Sure he’d babysat Carl a few times, but that was before. Lori had given him everything Carl would need and that was only for a few hours. And he’d not really been around to see what to do with Judith. She was relying on him to protect her. He knew he knew biologically he was her father, but now he had to actually be her father, her caretaker. And it bothered him that he didn’t know her name. He was going to do the best he could, but would he ever know her name?

Dawn began to break and finally, Shane could see. Though part of him wishes he couldn’t.

He was right, it was a deer that the walker had killed. The remains of the deer was a few feet away from Shane’s rope barrier. A cold sweat was on Shane’s brow. Few more feet and it could’ve been Shane’s leg instead of that deer.

He shook his head to clear the thought and started to process what his next move is. Judith started to cry and he didn’t really know what to do.

He shushed her gently and took a towel out of his backpack. He laid it on the ground and set her down on it. He changed her diaper quickly, as best he could, and fed her a little.

He desperately needed to combine her bag of supplies with his, because carrying two bags and a baby and his shotgun was already making his arms tired. He’s got strength but he doesn’t know how long he can keep this up, especially since he’s had zero sleep. He needs to find a house, or somewhere he can safely put Judith down and combine the packs.

The more Shane thought about it the more he felt unprepared. And he had to pee, so bad. He almost laughed because how was he going to do this? He felt sure he looked ridiculous but there was no one around to see him and laugh. He unbuttoned his shirt and put Judith inside, then he buttoned it back up a bit and tucked it into his pants to secure her. She happily cooed and played with his necklace. Now that his hands were free he could unzip his pants.

He leaned the shotgun against the tree and took care of his business. He joked with Judith ‘not to look’ and he laughed at her because she was very focused on his 22 necklace. She kept clutching at it and trying to eat it.

When he was done, he decided to leave her inside his shirt for the time being. He collected the rope and shouldered the two packs. Judith fussed a little, but only a little. Shane calmed her down surprisingly well. He was shocked by it himself. He spoke to her gently and she still played with the necklace happily.

As Shane walked, he found what looked like an old biking trail, and he decided to follow it. The sun was out now and shining through the trees. Judith whined when the sun got in her eyes. Shane himself was squinting a little.

“I know what we need little girl. Need some shade.” Shane stopped and took off his backpack. He rested it on his knee while he stood. He searched through the pack til he found what he was looking for.

“You want the brown one or the blue one?” he asked her. He had his police caps with him.

She reached for the blue one, which was the closest one to her. She tried to bite the brim of the hat which made Shane laugh. That got a smile from her. He adjusted the width of the hat to make is as small as possible and he put it on her head.

He put the brown one on, then shouldered his pack again.

“Look at us. We look badass. Walsh and Gri-….Walsh.”

He looked down at her and she was fiddling with the necklace again.

“You are mine ain’t ya?”

He hadn’t even been with a full day and he already loved her. He was willing to die for her if that’s what it took to save her life. He still didn’t know what he was doing but he was going to try his hardest.

She gurgled and Shane couldn’t help but smile. She didn’t have a care in the world. She couldn’t even talk yet.

The physical weight on his shoulders was tiring him, but the emotional weight of carrying her was eating at him as he walked up the trail. When he was at the prison he saw the bus drive away, but if he knew Rick, Rick was not on that bus. Not when he could be defending his people. He wondered if Rick got away. Lori might be on the bus, Shane thought. And if he knew Carl, he’d be right there next to his dad, if Rick would let him. And Carol wasn’t even at the prison, so he knew someone had to have made it out right? Or was he really only with this baby girl?

And what is her name?

And what if she isn’t his??

She had to be though right?

Shane had been keeping up with the time and her age fits. He didn’t see any other babies, and he had to figure babies in this world are rare.

He patted her back when that thought crossed his mind. She’s a special little baby. He bets that she lights up a room. Babies are happy things. But it’s more than that, Shane has a chance to be different, different for her. There are things he regrets, some things he doesn’t regret, but he doesn’t want to regret anything with her.

The sun was high overhead when Shane finally reached where the trail led.

“Look at that little girl, I think we’re in luck.”

This area was a campground, and there was a small building for registration and such.

Shane spotted a tent not too far from this little building, and if there weren’t any inside, he was going to snag that one.

But first he needed to check out the building. There were no cars out front unfortunately, but there were several benches and a couple wooden tables.

The front door was closed and locked. So he tried around back. That door was wide open which concerned him. Who knows what was inside.

He buttoned up his shirt a little higher on Judith’s head so nothing could get at her. Her little fingers clutched onto his tank top under his shirt.

He had both hands on his shotgun, he didn’t want to fire it if possible, but he would if he had to.

There was one walker inside, Shane spotted it before the walker saw him. Shane used the butt of his shotgun to hit the walker on the head. The walker fell to the floor and Shane closed the back door, so nothing else could get in. He’d get rid of the walker’s body later.

He investigated the room, it wasn’t much more than a front desk, and an open area for eating. A few more benches and tables were inside, the same as the ones outside. And there was a large closet behind the front desk for tents and equipment. He went in there first.

There was one tent, but several sleeping bags. There were a couple flashlights and a couple big backpacks were hidden on the top shelf. He pushed the benches and tables against the front and back door. And piled all of the supplies in the middle of the room.

He was going to set up the tent, he didn’t feel right sleeping in this place even though it was small. He wanted to be able to zip the tent all the way up, giving him and Judith two layers of protection.

But he couldn’t set up this tent with her inside his shirt.

He unrolled all the sleeping bags and made a little nest out of them, and he set Judith down in the middle. He took off the two backpacks, and dug through hers to see if she had any toys. She made a noise when she saw the red cups.

“You want these darlin?” he rose an eyebrow, and he handed her the little cups. She was very excited and he figured that’d give him some time to set up the tent.

He didn’t realize how hot he was til he took off the backpacks, and wasn’t holding Judith. His tank top was soaked with sweat. He took off his denim shirt, but left on the tank top for the time being.

He huffed seeing why this tent was the only one left. He didn’t want to go outside to get the other one he’d spotted, so he’d just make do. The tent wasn’t broken - it was just complex. But he was going to figure it out. It was only noon, he had time.

But that was when he realized he’d not eaten all day, and it’d been awhile since she had eaten as well.

There was no kitchen in this place, Shane assumed the tables were for people who’d brought pack lunches and things. He had some food, but more food is always good, but he’d just have to look at the next place.

He sat down on the floor next to Judith and dug through his backpack. He’d found several boxes of protein bars a couple days ago, so he snacked on one of those while he got Judith a bottle. There was several jars of baby food in her bag as well, and he wasn’t sure what to give her. But she reached for the bottle regardless. He pulled her into his lap and held the bottle steady. Her tiny hands held on, and one of her hands wrapped around a couple of his fingers. He took off her hat, and got a good look at her. He knew those eyes.

They were his.

She looked up at him and he saw her smile peek out from around the bottle.

“Hey sugar. Is that good? Yeah?”

Once she was done, it wasn’t long before she fell asleep. That’s when Shane started in on the tent.

He finally got it set up, and once it was finished he started in on organizing his bag and her bag into the big hiking backpack.

He took out all his clothes, there wasn’t much, but he had enough to keep warm because the weather was starting to get cooler at night. In addition to his clothes, he had a good thick jacket too. It was only a matter of time before it got cool in the daytime.

He started to put things into piles, never in his life had he been this organized. He had a clothes pile, supplies pile (weapons, ammo, etc), and food/water. He dumped out Judith’s bag and put her things with his, then he started pack the big backpack. There was space on this backpack were he could tie a sleeping bag to it. He’d have to carry the tent, but it came with a bag and there was a good sturdy strap he could put over his shoulder.

Once everything was packed, his next priority was making a little pouch for Judith. He cut two holes out of the bottom of his old backpack for her legs, and that way he could put her inside. He’d leave the backpack open for her head and arms, and he’d wear it backwards.

As soon as that was done, he leaned against the front desk counter and watched Judith as she slept on the pile of sleeping bags.

The next thing he knew was he opened his eyes, it was late in the afternoon, and he forgot where he was. The first thing on his mind was the baby.

How could he be so stupid and fall asleep?

He jolted up, and hit his head on the counter.

“Shit!”

His exclamation and the noise from hitting his head, woke Judith, she hadn’t moved but now she’d been startled.

It scared her and she started to cry.

Shane rubbed his head, he really hit his head good.

“Hey shh shh it’s ok sweetheart. Daddy’s got you, c’mere,” he reached for Judith and cradled her in his arms. “It’s ok. I’m sorry I didn’t mean to scare ya sweet pea.” He stroked her hair and kissed her forehead while he rubbed her back a little. She hiccupped and calmed down.

“You ok with that sweetheart?”

She looked at him, she had no clue what he was saying but he couldn’t help but talk to her.

“You ok with me bein’ your daddy?”

She reached up to tug on his beard a little. She babbled a little, and it tugged at his heart. At this point he was just happy she wasn’t scared of him. She seemed to trust him.

Dusk was setting in, and Shane had moved all the sleeping bags and supplies inside the tent. He carried Judith around on his hip as he gave her a bottle. While she ate, he did a finally sweep of the little building. Made sure all the windows were locked, he didn’t have time to board them (or any nails to use). He’d not seen (or heard) any walkers all day around the place except for that one he’d killed. He was hoping nothing would draw any walker’s attention.

Once he felt the place was secure, and once Judith was done eating, Shane took her inside the tent. He zipped it up tight.

He turned on a single flashlight, so he could see to adjust her on her little bed he’d made. There were several sleeping bags on the floor of the tent. He had one for himself, and he made a little nest of sorts for Judith using the rest of the sleeping bags.

He sat up to watch her as she fell asleep, and he ate one of his protein bars. He munched quietly as he thought about the last 24 hours.

He thought he loved her, but then other thoughts came creeping in.

Some things you don’t forget, and he was told once when he was in school, that the love he had to offer was shallow.

Right then Judith whimpered, and Shane put his hand on her belly.

Maybe he was just lonely, and he thought he loved the only person in his life. He felt guilty for wanting this girl to be his. She is. He knows it. But he can’t stop thinking about what Rick said the last time they spoke.

“Have my children call you ‘daddy’ is that what you want?”

Shane had never thought much about having kids before. A lot of things for him had just been doing what he needed to do for himself. He loves Carl, but he never thought that much about having his own children. But now having this sweet little girl completely relying on him for protection? He’d do anything for her, he already had risked his life for her. That’s what you do for someone you love isn’t it?

And even if she wasn’t HIS, she is now - because, they are all each other has.

Shane clicked off the flashlight and laid down. He used his backpack for a pillow. His hand was still on Judith’s tummy. He heard cicadas and crickets and was glad those were the only outside noises he could hear.

He laid awake for awhile, but he knew he couldn’t risk another accidental nap like he’d done earlier today. So he let himself sleep.

Judith’s whimpers woke him up in the morning. Dawn had just broken and there was a little light inside the tent. Shane heard the faint growl of a walker but it sounded like it was coming from outside. There was no way one could’ve gotten in and him not know about it.

Shane took care of Judith, he changed her and fed her in hopes of keeping her quiet. He gave her the red cups to play with while he ate a bite for breakfast.

It was hot already this morning so he took off his tank top and put on a t-shirt. He packed up his bag and put Judith in her little baby pouch he’d made. She fussed a little but when she realized she could move her legs freely she giggled as she kicked around.

Shane put his hat back on his head, and put the other hat on her head. He didn’t roll up the sleeping bag or tent yet, but he still took the backpack with him. He wasn’t interested in moving on so soon. Today he’d scout out the area, see what else he could scavenge.

His main worry was how to kill walkers. Because if he shot the gun out in the woods, it would draw more. Not to mention it would scare Judith. And if she was scared, she would cry, and that would mean more noise. He’d gotten pretty good with a knife, but that means he’s gotta be close to the walker to get it, and that could risk Judith getting hurt.

He knew he’d heard a walker around, so that was a concern as he moved the bench away from the door so he could go outside.

That other tent he’d spotted the day before was a few yards out, so he walked up to it carefully. He heard the unmistakable moans coming from inside, and he hoped that was the walker he’d heard. He didn’t get to close to the tent, and he prayed it wouldn’t draw any more attention.

He walked around the surrounding wooded area, making sure he knew how to get back.

There wasn’t much of anything. It was so quiet. He didn’t know if that bothered him or if that was good.

He continued his search for more water, or a better shelter, but nothing came up.

He walked a little further and came to a clearing.

It was a train track.

He spotted a boot print. That meant there were people around right? He just hoped they were the friendly kind. He walked up the track a ways and say the sign for “Terminus.”

“Sounds like a bunch of bullshit to me.” Shane mumbled. But he had a thought. Someone from the prison might follow these tracks to Terminus. He’d have to watch his back for others following the tracks too, but he was already looking out for walkers. He could handle it.

“What do you think Sweet Pea?” he asked little Judith. He’d taken to calling her Sweet Pea now.

Shane knew Terminus probably wasn’t a stronghold. It may have been before, but usually these things didn’t pan out. But he wanted to go towards it, just in case he ran into someone from the prison. This might be his only lead at finding people. Even if they didn’t want him back, he had to try.

Only problem, he’d have to leave that little camping lodge.

At least now though he had the tent.

Tent was better that nothing.

He’d slept in a tent in the early days outside of Atlanta.

Never imagined this is where life would take him. Out in the middle of the woods holding a baby. His baby, and he didn’t even know her damn name.

He backtracked to his little campsite. It was late in the afternoon and he decided to stay the night at the campsite just one more night. He could get some good rest and pack up at first light the next morning.

“That sound alright to you little darlin? Stay here tonight then move on up the road?” Shane held her little hand between his thumb and forefinger. She curled her fingers around his forefinger and brought it to her mouth to slobber all over.

Shane got himself and Judith settled in for the night. They’d both eaten and Judith was getting sleepy. Shane was packing up the rest of their things to save him time in the morning.

He laid on his back on his makeshift bed, one hand near his shotgun, the other hand near Judith. He was wide awake. He was so sleepy but he wasn’t tired and he hated that feeling. He needed rest.

‘I hate sleepin’ on my back,’ he thought. And it was so quiet out. There were hardly any crickets chirping or frogs croaking tonight. It was too quiet and it was unsettling. The only sound he could hear was Judith’s soft breathing. That brought him some comfort, but only made him more aware of his duty to his little sweet pea.

In the silence as he lay awake he thought about before all of this had happened. How he used to sleep. He missed his bed. He missed sprawling out on his bed, his face buried into the pillow. His arm draped over the edge, or maybe draped over a woman. He rarely ever slept on his back. He could if he had to. He’d done it before during stakeouts when he had to take a quick nap. But even then that wasn’t an all night kinda sleeping position. But now he knows he has to sleep on his back. It’s easier to get up at a moment’s notice. But right now, he’s so tired. He’s so damn tired and he wants to roll over on his stomach so bad.

They’d been safe the first few nights, maybe it would be ok. It couldn’t hurt. So he gives in and rolls over on his stomach. He scoots a little closer to Judith, he’s only inches away from her. He sighs heavily and feels sleep coming.

He wakes up in the morning and feels well rested. He cracks his neck and tickles Judith’s tummy to get her to giggle.

That’s when he hears it.

He picks up Judith and unzips the tent.

He steps out slowly, and looks out the window of the little lodge.

Outside is a group of walkers. At least a dozen.

“Shit.” Shane whispers and ducks down to get back into the ten before any of them can see him.

Judith was a bit startled by his quick movements but she was quickly calmed when Shane gave her breakfast.

He had a real decision to make here. Does he leave Judith in the tent? Or does he pack up the tent? He took him an hour almost to set it up. If he leaves her in the tent and kills the walkers, he’ll have to disassemble the tent after. But he runs the risk of the sounds of the gunshots bringing other walkers. But he fears that’s his only other option. If he packs the tent up now, the walkers will most likely see him and Judith will just be on the floor.

Shane gets his knife out of his boot and cuts a piece of cloth off of his shirt. He tears that into two tiny strips, and puts them in Judith’s ears. She starts to fuss but he knows her fussing is better than her ears hurting from the sound of his shotgun. He gives Judith her toys and she’s distracted while Shane gets out of the tent. There’s nothing inside for her to hurt herself with, and he zips it back up. He doesn’t think about what could happen.

He smashes a window with the butt of his shotgun and begins to fire at the walkers. Three are near the window and he gets them quickly. Two more approach after hearing the sound. He gets them with a quick squeeze of the trigger.

Seven walkers remain.

Six of the walkers walk towards the window. Shane hits all of them but two.

Judith begins to cry in fear. Shane tries to ignore the guilt he feels for leaving her, but he can’t hold her and take care of walkers.

The two remaining walkers approach the window. He has to reload the shotgun, so instead he quickly reaches for the knife in his boot. He stabs one in the skull, but the other reaches for Shane’s arm. He twists his arm slightly to stab the walker in the face. In the process his arm scraped against some of the broken glass in the window sill.

Shane feels a warmth on his arm, and he looks down to see he has a gash on his forearm. It’s too clean to be from the walker, and he realizes it’s from the glass shards from the broken window. The scrape was worse than he thought. He’s gotta wrap this up.

Judith is still crying, and Shane carefully with one arm, unzips the tent.

She calms once she sees him.

“Hey sweet girl. Sorry I had to leave, had to protect you. But daddy’s back see?” he leaned down to kiss her forehead. His beard tickled her and she giggled.

He smiled down at her but winced when he felt the sting of the cut. He’d have to stitch it up. He should’ve expected something like this, because he’d already packed up his pack, now he’d have to dig through it again. Luckily he put the first aid type stuff at the top with the food.

He stitched up his arm as best he could, and dressed the wound. He packed up his stuff, again. He put Judith in her little back pack and he got ready to disassemble the tent.

The coast was clear and once the tent was packed, Shane was ready to leave.

Shane moved the benches out of the way to get out the door. He opened the door to see a walker standing in front of it.

Quickly Shane jabbed the butt of his shotgun which knocked the walker over. Shane took a few steps and stomped on the walker’s head.

His adrenaline still high, Shane jogged towards the woods. He didn’t want to be out in the open anymore if he could help it.

He found the train tracks, and followed them from within the woods. He stumbled across a small creek and filled up all the water bottles he had. He splashed some water onto his face, and poured a bit onto the back of his neck.

He walked quietly, his hand resting on Judith’s tummy. Her hand was holding one of his fingers. His other hand was holding his shotgun and he had it propped up on his shoulder.

A turtle walked across his path, and Shane killed it to make for dinner. He hadn’t eaten anything in the past few days but some of those protein bars.

He put the turtle in his backpack, and continued to follow the train tracks. When the air began to cool off he knew it was time to set up the tent. He’d make a fire tonight.

He made rope perimeter around some trees, and set up the tent. The spot where he’d make the fire was near the center of the rope perimeter.

Shane collected wood for the fire, and Judith “helped” too by clapping a couple small sticks together.

He started the fire, and cooked the turtle. He sat in front of the embers of the fire as he ate with little Judith in his lap. He picked at the turtle with one hand and with the other he fed Judith.

The breeze was cool. He felt the sweat on his forehead cooling off, and he closed his eyes for a moment enjoying the feeling.

The sun had set and Shane kicked out the embers of the fire. He didn’t have as many sleeping bags this time, just two. That was all he had room for to tie onto the backpack.

It was too hot to sleep inside the sleeping bag, so Shane slept on top. He made a little nest again for Judith and made sure she was secure. He slept as close to her as possible while still giving her room.

It took Shane awhile to feel comfortable to sleep, but exhaustion took over and he gave in.

Early the next morning Shane woke up hearing voices outside the tent.

The voices got louder, and Shane picked up Judith.

Then someone began to unzip the tent from the outside.

“Let’s see what we have here!” the voice said.

Shane held Judith as close to his chest as possible, and his hand curled around his gun.

A face appeared in the entry way of the tent, and Shane could see a group of men standing around outside.

“Holy shit! We got a live one! And a damn baby!”

An older man leaned down to have a look, it was apparent he was the leader of the group.

“Well come on out son.”

Shane could feel his blood pressure rising but he was determined to keep his head.

He got up and stepped out of tent. His skin was crawling and he felt sick. He’d rather deal with walkers than be cornered like this.

“What’s your name son?” the man asked. Shane didn’t answer. Shane saw a couple of the men go into the tent, they grabbed Shane’s backpack. He heard of them say “claimed.” Shane took a step forward in protest, but another man stepped in between Shane and the tent.

“What do you want?” Shane growled.

“Is she yours?” the man asked ignoring Shane’s question. Shane’s arm curled tighter around her.

“Shane?”

Shane turned his head when he heard the familiar voice.

It was Daryl.

“Daryl, you know this man?” the leader asked. Daryl nodded.

Meanwhile the men were still rifling through Shane’s backpack.

“He’s a cop!” one of them spat.

“Shane you a cop?” the leader asked.

“What the hell difference does it make?”

“Just a simple yes or no question Shane. Sooner you answer, sooner we leave you alone.”

“Yeah. Alright yeah I was a cop.”

“What about her? She yours?”

“Yeah she’s mine.”

“What’s her name?”

Shane looked at Daryl. Did Daryl know her name?

“Shit son you don’t know your daughter’s name?” he laughed it was obviously a joke but to Shane it was all too real. 

Shane remained silent.

The men began to take down the tent. They threw the sleeping bags in the dirt and dumped the contents of Shane’s backpack on the ground.

They left most of the stuff, but they took the now empty backpack, the tent, and the sleeping bags. Daryl tried to help Shane, but there would be no winning.

Shane wasn’t going to beg, but he wanted to tear these men apart. The leader came up to Shane and reached for Judith.

Shane turned away from him, there was no way in hell he was going to let this man touch his child.

Shane spat in the man’s face, which caused one of the men to kick Shane on the back of his knee. The blow brought Shane to his knees, and the leader took Judith from Shane.

He fought to stand up, but two men kept Shane down. One punched him in the gut, and the other grabbed a handful of Shane’s hair to force him to look up.

Judith was whimpering at being held by a stranger. Shane tore out of the grip of the men and stood up.

“Give her back man.” Daryl spoke up. 

“We’re gonna see what Shane here does. He’s let us walk all over him today, if this baby girl is his, he’s gonna have to prove it.”

One of the men gripped Shane’s arm to pull him back, and that’s when Shane snapped. He yanked his arm out of the man’s grip and punched him in the face.

Shane roared as another man lunged for him. He flipped the man over and Shane pressed his boot against the man’s windpipe.

“Give me my daughter. Now.”

The leader nodded at a man behind Shane. Shane leaned down and took the knife out of his boot, and turned to stab the man in his gut.

“So the cop does have some balls!” one of the men cackled. Shane was scowling and his chest was heaving. His fingers twitched.

“Alright alright, here you go,”

The leader handed back Judith, and Shane held her so tight she whimpered.

Daryl gave Shane a look of apology, there wasn’t much he could do. Shane knew that, Shane himself was unsure of what to do.

Daryl put his hand on Shane’s shoulder as the men began to leave.

“What the hell you doin’ with them man?” Shane whispered.

“Gonna leave as soon as I can, I’ll find ya. Take care of the little ass kicker.” Daryl whispered and turned to leave with the group.

Shane was alone again, and with even less supplies than he started out with.

“You alright sweet pea?” Shane asked as he kissed her forehead. He sighed heavily and sat down to lean against a tree. The events of what just happened hit him and his body began to shake. He felt a stinging on his knees, blood was seeping through his pants. He’d skinned them when he was forced to the ground. He had a headache now from his hair being pulled, and his heart was racing still. He had to calm down.

Judith was fine. He’d been better but he was alive. He still had his stuff, for the most part. The tent and sleeping bags were gone, as well as his backpack. He had to repack the only backpack he had left, which was Judith’s carrier. He’d just have to hold her again.

He picked himself up and continued to walk. He crossed to the other side of the train tracks to distance himself, he knew Daryl wouldn’t have trouble tracking him down.

Now he had to find shelter again. He couldn’t backtrack to his previous campsite, because now it had the broken window and dead walkers were scattered everywhere.

He kept on going through the woods along the train tracks.

“Little Ass Kicker huh? That your name baby girl?” Shane spoke softly as he fed her lunch. He snorted, “sounds like somethin’ Daryl would name ya. I’d say it’s pretty damn accurate.”

He smiled down at her as she ate. As much as it gave his arm a bit of fatigue, he wouldn’t lie, he loved being able to carry her again. Sure it was an inconvenience but it was one he was more than willing to endure. She’s his baby, he’s willing to do whatever it takes. And maybe his arm will be a little sore, but it’s not anything any other parent would do for their child.

When she started to get sleepy after she ate, Shane held her up close so she could rest her head on his shoulder.

She whined a little as she started to go to sleep, she sounded upset.

“Shh shh it’s ok sweet pea, daddy’s got ya. Not gonna let anythin’ happen to ya sweetheart. Sleep.” He cooed.

She drifted off to sleep, and Shane continued to walk quietly in the woods. He spotted a clearing parallel to the train tracks. It was a road. That’s when he spotted a car, it had pulled off into the ditch.

Shane hated to wake Judith, but he needed to know if that car would run. He climbed in the driver’s seat as best he could while keeping her still.

The engine came to life, but Shane saw there was no gas left. Thinking quickly, he pulled the car into the trees. At least he would have some cover in the woods, better than being out in the open on the road.

The car stalled, and he didn’t get as deep in the woods as he’d hoped. He could just barely see the train tracks from where he was, and that would just have to do for now. This was the best he was going to get as far as shelter goes.

He walked around in the surrounding area to pick up fallen limbs off of trees, he wanted to hide the car as best he could without looking too obvious. The car had given out near a bush, so he hoped to hide the rest of the car from prying eyes. Walkers had been the main concern, but after this morning, he was overly cautious.

Once the car was camouflaged, Shane and Judith got inside.

He climbed into the backseat so he could have more space. He adjusted the passenger and driver’s seats so they would go up as much as possible, giving him more leg room in the back. He gave Judith her dinner, he ate something himself, and then he changed the bandage on his arm.

Judith was sitting on the seat next to him. She was happily playing with a toy, when a thump startled her.

“Ah hell,” Shane whispered.

He heard the growls before he saw the walkers. There were two, both had their faces pressed to the side of the car. They were on the opposite side of the car as Shane, the walkers had seen Judith through cracks in the camouflage.

Shane sat for a moment to think. He knew the walkers couldn’t get in, could they? But even if they couldn’t, they might draw the attention of others and Shane would really be stuck.

So thinking quickly, he grabbed his shotgun. He got out of the car, leaving Judith safely inside.

He ran around the side of the car and got the walker’s attention.

He didn’t want to risk breaking the glass, so he lured them away as best he could.

Shane shot and killed both walkers, one was a close call. When Shane killed the second one, it was right up on him, when he fired the shot, ‘blood’ from the walker splattered onto his face.

Quickly he got back to car to find a scared, crying Judith.

Her crying stopped the moment she was in his arms. Shane wondered if she knew he was protecting her.

Remembering he had walker blood on his face, he wiped off his face with one of his shirts. He looked in the rearview mirror to make sure his face wasn’t bloody anymore. He got a good look at his reflection.

‘You look like shit Walsh,’ he thought. His eyes were tired, sweat and dirt was on his brow. His hair was a curly mess. His beard was thick, but he was proud of that. He stroked it casually.

“Think I might keep this, think I should?” he laughed at himself, he keeps talking to Judith, but he never expects an answer. “Ya know one of these days you’re gonna be able to reply back to your daddy. Don’t worry sweet pea, I’ll verse you in the ways of sarcasm.”

She yawned and Shane cracked a smile, “that’s my girl.”

Shane took out his jacket, and a couple more shirts to make a pillow. He stretched out across the backseat, and leaned his back against the door. He adjusted the shirt pillow under his neck and Judith was curled up asleep on his chest. One arm was wrapped around her, and he could already feel drool seeping through his shirt.

Sleep came to Shane quickly, and for the first time in a long time, he slept through the night. When he woke up, he cracked his neck. He had a bit of crick in it, but he’d slept so good it didn’t matter. Judith had drooled all over his chest. Shane took fed her breakfast, and quickly changed her. Then he changed out of the drool covered shirt, and put on a different shirt. He munched on some breakfast and rubbed the crick out of his neck.

It started to get muggy in the car, so he slowly climbed out. He made sure the coast was clear, and he grabbed his pack, and Judith.

It wasn’t long before the smell of smoke hit his nose. Still unsure about the whole Terminus situation, he stayed in the woods while he kept an eye on the tracks.

Before he could even reach Terminus, he saw a small clearing and a little cabin.

Then he heard it.

He heard voices – voices he knew.

Within moments he saw the group, and heard Carl call his name. Rick and Carl ran to Shane. For a moment Shane thought maybe they were happy to see him, but then it hit him.

How could he be so stupid?

Rick and Carl with tears in their eyes both reached for Judith.

Shane remembered they thought she had died, and he let her go. It about ripped his heart in half to have his arms empty. But he smiled anyway, because he was right. She brought joy wherever she went.

Daryl nodded at Shane, “knew it wouldn’t be long before I found ya.”

And Carol smiled a hello at him. Shane blinked back tears and tried to spot the familiar faces. He hadn’t spoken to any of them since the farm. He didn’t see Lori, and he didn’t have to ask. He had a feeling she was gone.

Shane felt awkward now. What was he supposed to do?

Right about then Rick walked over to Shane. Carl was off with Judith and some others had gathered around and were smiling and laughing at her.

Rick put his hand on Shane’s shoulder and nodded, “don’t know how to thank you.”

Shane looked down at his boot, not sure of how to even reply.

They both smiled as the watched Carol holding Judith. Judith started to cry and Shane’s arm jerked. His instinct to protect her had been so strong over the past several days.

“Wanna go back to your daddy?” Carol asked her.

Shane’s heart broke.

Carol walked over to hand Judith over to Rick, but Judith reached for Shane.

Rick took her, but Judith still cried and reached for Shane.

“You wanna stay with us?” Rick asked Shane as he handed Judith to him, “I think Judith wants to have…her dad around.”

A wave of relief washed over him, and a hint of fear. Rick just admitted that this baby was in fact Shane’s child.

A smile broke out on Shane’s face as he took Judith.

“Judith huh? Carl?” Shane asked guessing the origin.

Rick nodded with a smile.

“Well hey Judith! Glad I know your name now sweet pea.” Shane couldn’t stop smiling. Judith babbled happily and reached for Shane’s 22 necklace. She made a happy sound and put the necklace in her mouth.

Shane adjusted her on his hip, and the group began to walk.

“I think you could rival Rick with that beard you got Shane,” Carol teased as she walked by.

Shane laughed and felt a feeling of belonging already that he hadn’t felt….since the beginning. He was more than happy to just follow this time. He was welcomed back, and he had his baby girl in his arms.

Shane knew there would be trouble ahead, but all that mattered to him right now, was that he wasn’t alone.

He has a family.


End file.
